Cassandra Pendragon

In the beginning, there had been only darkness. It is told, that light was the first creation, the first spark, something different, something that gave meaning to the infinite backness, since it wasn’t absolute, anymore. Only when there’s a distinction between what is and what is not, can existence flourish…

A wave of light spread outwards, from where he had slammed into me, and in the overwhelming whiteness, nothing else mattered. There were no shadows, no shapes, there was only a blinding glare and a small part of me wondered, if there even was a difference between day and night, darkness and light, or if it all came down to what we made of it. It truly was strange, what the mind could come up with, when it was reeling to make sense of something it couldn’t comprehend and I was way out of my depths. Despite the unfathomable amount of energy, I was circulating through every pore of my body, I couldn’t even begin to understand, what my senses were screaming at me.

A brief, fluttering touch turned into an earthshaking assault, the crushing, colliding forces, set free, wherever our wings met, became a gentle breeze against my skin. I heard colours and saw sounds, when even the twisted and warped rules of this place shattered like frozen glass. For the fraction of a second or an entire eternity, I hovered somewhere in between, the raging storm of power the only real thing I could cling to. But it was more than just magic and energy we used to fight. His memories, his existence, and mine went to war.

His countless years and my passion, his experience and my hope surged back and forth, like a bead, caught between two magnets. Sometimes, I didn’t know where his consciousness began and mine ended. We were the two sides of a coin, tossed into the air, twirling and changing until we came back down and only one remained visible. For all intent and purposes, I should have lost, I should have been annihilated and become nothing, nothing but a minuscule bubble in a sea of time but I didn’t, for there was one thing I had, which he lacked. I had something to live for, I had people waiting for me, counting on me and I wasn’t going to allow a fragment of my past to get in the way. I wasn’t going to give up and, by all the gods, I wasn’t going to change. He was me and I was him and every ounce of strength he brought to bear, was already a part of me.

When I felt the fabric of this flimsy construct groan and tremble under the onslaught, ready to break apart entirely, I ceased my struggle. Instead of giving him something to push against, to create a balance, I welcomed his frustration, his anger and his power. Like two kids, playing tug of war, I suddenly let go of the rope and the dead, desolate world was flooded with light.

Ahri Arete

Desperation and fear slowly settled in, as I numbly stared at the empty bed. A second before, a beautiful kitsune had writhed in pain, her wings ripping through stone and earth, but now, she was simply gone. Even the glowing sparks, she had vanished into, were winking out and only the sharp scent of ozone was left behind.

“Where… where is she,” Reia whispered from behind me, her voice trembling with a growing dread, she couldn’t hide. When Cassandra had first lashed out, I had used my wings to shield her family and the small space around them, was the only spot, which hadn’t been cut to shreds.

“I…” I simply didn’t know. She was alive, that much I could tell. I still felt her, the echos of her plight a constant thrum in my chest, but there was no way to tell, where she had gone to.

With a thought, I made my wings disappear and scrutinised the still glowing gashes, where hers had burned through granite and marble, but it didn’t seem like we’d have to worry about the ceiling coming down. At least for the moment. Gods, that had been much too close. If she had continued her frenzy, I might not have been able to hold on. Her power couldn’t harm me, but unfortunately, that didn’t mean, I hadn’t felt the pressure. My girl was becoming stronger, every day and she had nearly pried my wings apart, without even trying.

“She’s alive,” a cold, uncaring voice hissed in my ear. “That’s more than I expected. The rest is up to her. I upheld my end of the bargain. It’s time for you to uphold yours. I’m… tired.” I was torn. I wanted to rush after Cassy, to find her, to make sure she was fine, but I couldn’t. I wanted to blame someone, to lash out at the spider and sent her back to her dark, empty prison, but I couldn’t. Forlornly, I stared at the burned out runes of the summoning spell. They had withstood the forces, channeled through them, just long enough for Shassa to work her magic. The charred spirals seemed like a mockery to me, now, a reminder of what I had pushed Cassandra to do and now, she was somewhere else, alone and fighting for her life. And I couldn’t even reach her.

“You knew the risks,” Shassa snarled. “Fulfil your promise now and fret later. The winged cockroach will return. Until then, you have work to do.” As much as I hated to admit it, she was right. I had a little girl and her family to comfort, a fey to cure and a conspiracy to unravel. Gods, I hoped Cassy would be alright.

“I don’t know, where she is,” I said firmly and turned around, a forced smile on my lips. “But I know she’s fine.” I touched my tattoo and added: “I’d know, otherwise.” I kneeled and hugged Reia tightly, my eyes travelling across the dejected group behind her. Mordred was biting his lip and nervously wringing his hands, while his mother was prowling up and down, her tails twitching, as if she was on the verge of pouncing. The warm, fluffy bundle in my arms was shaking, her quiet, muffled sobs sending shivers down my spine. Aurelia seemed merely tense, but when she turned her head, I thought I saw a bright shimmer in the corner of her eye.

“She’s going to come back,” I continued, convincing myself, just as much as them. “Don’t doubt her. We’ve done everything we could and I know, it’s going to be enough. She will come back.” I caught the eye of everyone in turn and wrapped my tails around Reia. “Don’t doubt it for a second.” With more fire I added: “But until then, we still have a friend to take care of and a debt to settle. Mordred, can you give me the crystal you’ve prepared?” He stopped fidgeting and took a deep, calming breath. With a visible effort, he bit back his frustration and handed me the gem with an awkward bow.

“Thanks. Thanks for saving us and… I… I know how hard this must be for you,” he replied. “I appreciate the effort and you’re right. She’ll be back.” Now, it was my turn to struggle with my tears but I managed a quivering grin.

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“I know she will. And we’ll make sure, she doesn’t return to one more dead friend.”

“Which means, we have to somehow save Erya’s life,” Helena concluded, while she rubbed her back against my leg, a very feline thank you gesture. “Will the spider…”

“No,” Shassa immediately refused. “Tell them I can’t. I’m barely holding on, as it is. I need time.”

“She spent most of her strength. This one is on us, but I’m sure, we’ll manage. It won’t be nearly as difficult as what we’ve done, just now.” I gently pushed Reia to arms length but kept my tails around her waist. “It’ll turn out just fine, you’ll see,” I reassured her, before I straightened. “I’ve seen almost everything, Shassa has done. It’s a risk, but I think I can emulate most of her magic.”

“How,” Helena asked, her fear for her daughter a grey, suffocating fog behind her words. “I thought… Cassy just got her magic and you have less tails than her. How can you…”

“I cheated,” I interrupted. A flickering flame manifested above my head, turned into a crown and vanished, while I explained: “I can’t really use magic, but I can control my flames. Like I said, it’s a risk, but if she really suffers from the same curse, I think I can burn the damned thing right out of her. We have to know, though. That’s why I’d like you to take a look, while I deal with the spider. Ask Viyara for help, if you have to, or even one of the vampires. Just make sure, it’s not something else, entirely.” The silver fox bared her fangs.

“It’s not, I’ve already seen it and it definitely is the same magic. Maybe less powerful, but still the same. But I’ll make sure, don’t worry. And while I’m at it, I’ll try to find out what happened to…”

“Morgan,” I cursed. I hadn’t really thought of the fey turned human, but she’d, of course, have been with her grandmother. Stupid. As if on cue, I heard a soft knock on the door.

“Can I come in,” Viyara asked. She didn’t wait for a reply. “Did you…” he words caught in her throat, when she saw the destroyed, bloody bed and the smouldering cuts along the walls. “Oh, no,” she whispered. “Is she…”

“No,” I immediately interrupted her. I didn’t even want to hear her ask, if Cassy was gone. “She’s… honestly, I have no clue, but she’s alive. You know her, she won’t be bested by a curse, no matter who created it.” She blinked, a single tear running down her cheek. Before I could react, she took a few quick steps and hugged me tightly, the scent of molten gold ticking my nose.

“I know,” she breathed against my neck. I awkwardly patted her back, unsure of what to say. I really liked the dragoness, but I couldn’t pretend like I didn’t know how she felt. I wasn’t insecure, at least not in that regard, but trying to console her, while we were both hurting similarly, was strange. Still, she was so young and if I allowed her to feel my hesitation, it would only serve to make things worse. I pulled her in closer and said:

“Good. Because we can’t just wait for her to come back. Have you looked in on Erya, on your way here?” She tensed, but still disentangled herself from my embrace. She rubbed her eyes with her palms and managed to keep her composure, even her voice was steady, when she replied:

“I have, nothing’s changed. But that’s not why I’m here. We have another problem. Xorlosh sent the messenger. The fleet, it has been ambushed. From the looks of it, not many survived and those who did… the kitsune had to slaughter them, before they could turn. They had all been branded and marked… there was no other way.” I could only stare. Damn it all to hell and back!

Mordred, on the other hand, had an entirely different outlook: “so, the self righteous prick has finally arrived and he even got his hands dirty. Who would have thought.”

“Self righteous…” it took me a moment to connect the dots. “Arthur! Thank the gods.”

“Not the words I’d have chosen,” he grumbled, but quickly amended, when his mother growled, deep in her throat: “but we can really use the help.” He turned to her and added: “you should head back to the ship. Ahri and I will join you, once we’ve taken care of Erya. If we can, we’ll bring Alassara and her lieutenants with us. I can’t imagine we’ve much time left, now that the first domino has fallen. The kids are already there, aren’t they?”

“Everyone is,” I interjected. “It’s only us and Morgan, unless Archy and Estrella came up with another glorious scheme, while we were away.”

“They didn’t,” Reia replied subduedly. “I made them promise, before we left this morning. They’re trying to learn as much as they can about the ship. We’ve… we thought it’d come in handy. If we’re headed to the Emerald Island, next…”

“We,” I echoed. “The deal was for you to accompany us, not your partners in crime.”

“It doesn’t matter, does it,” she snivelled. “We’re not going either way. Not without…” tears welled up in her eyes again, as she began to cry silently, her fragile body quivering. Without a moment’s hesitation, I tightened my tails around her waist and propelled her into my arms.

“She’s going to come back to us,” I whispered. “I know it. Do you really doubt her, after everything we’ve been through? She’s battled dragons and gods… and she’d sooner let the world end than be separated from you.”

“I know,” she mumbled, her head buried in the nape of my neck. “It’s just…”

“It happens much too often. Believe me, I’m as fed up as you are with pulling her ass out of the fire. Why don’t you tell her once she’s back?”

“I will.” She rubbed her cheek against mine. “Thanks.” I closed my eyes and breathed in her scent, my need for a bit of comfort just as great as hers. A moment later, I felt strong arms wrap around the both of us and a fluffy fox wiggle into our embrace.

“You’re not alone, little one,” Mordred said huskily. “And you’ll never be.” I wasn’t even sure, if he knew who she was, but his words struck a chord with her and she managed a small nod. Determined, she wiped her eyes and granted us a tremulous smile.

“So, what now,” she asked bravely.

“Now, you, Viyara and Helena go back to he ship and try to figure out, what’s going on,” I answered. “Mordred and I will patch up our fey and, if there’s a chance, find out what happened to Morgan. We’ll join you, as soon as we can.”

“I’ll stay, as well,” Viyara added. “You might need my help and I don’t see, what I could possibly do, onboard. Besides, if you really intend to go after Morgan, I’m sure my claws and fangs will come in handy.”

“If she really has been…” Mordred paused, massaging his temples. “Of course she has. Fine.” He unceremoniously picked up Helena and placed the snarling fox on Reia’s shoulder. “Time to go. We’ll be right behind you. Don’t take any detours, the gods only know, what kind of trouble is brewing in Free Land, right about now.”

“I might have an idea,” a silky voice came from the door. Without preamble, Alassara came closer, her eyes filled with worry. She turned to me and asked: “remember the mercenaries, Cassandra tried to convince to help us?” When I nodded, she explained: “one of then, the girl, Vanya, I think, is upstairs. She came knocking a few minutes ago. Apparently, Cassy wanted to meet with them, but she never showed. So… they’re here, now and they have news. Same goes for me. Silas has been out and about and he heard some worrisome rumours. Apparently, there’s a civil war brewing and it’s none of my doing, even though I’m going to pick a side.” I groaned.

“Of course there is. Do you already know that your fleet is all, but gone?” Taken aback, she stared and mumbled:

“No, no I didn’t. Blood and death, without the ships, we’re sitting ducks.”

“What do you mean,” Helena wanted to know, her anxiety clear in her thoughts.

“The Slave Lands, the islands, the slaves are taken from, they’re rebelling. That’s what Silas told me. The Captains… they’re busy trying to figure out, where they got their weapons and ships from and how they might yet squash them, but that’s not all. Captain Kirena hasn’t been seen for nearly a day and she was the only one, who had deeper connections than the fear of the whip. Without her, there’s probably no chance to get to the bottom of this mess and without the ships…” she left the rest unsaid. From the looks of it, there was a storm brewing, in and around Free Land. Again, it seemed like we were enacting a well orchestrated play, only this time, we didn’t have the luxury of an almost invincible angel, fighting for us. Somehow, we had to change the rules, without Cassandra’s help.